Tuesday, February 9, 2010

It's Raining on My Parade

Showers are in today's forecast, with thunderstorms possible. It's a fine day for sitting in my sunroom office, surrounded by wet, yet snug and dry, working on a story assignment about, of all things, rain.

I have beside me on my desk a compilation of numbers, 350 sets of numbers to a page, representing the past seven decades of rainfall in my hometown. It's my job today to pore over these figures (hm) and analyze trends, then write an entertaining magazine article about them.

Ha! Sometimes I laugh at the work I am paid to do. What I know about rain you could put in a teaspoon. Let's see: The water cycle is this, evaporation from ocean surfaces, water vapor in the air, condensation, formation of clouds, collision of warm air and cold air, the jet stream, and voila ~~~ snow in Virginia, rain in California.

The only difference between me and the next nincompoop is that I'm motivated to go find out about rain, whereas the next nice nincompoop actually has real work to do.

(Silence for all of five minutes, while subject refers to the magic of Google, unearths the USGS water cycle diagram, and says, Aha!)

Now well-schooled in the water cycle, I turn my attention to an unrelated question: Is writing a left-brain or right-brain activity?

That question comes up while I pour myself another cup of French roast coffee. If I were in the same zip code as my friend and neuroscientist Mariana, I would call her up and ask. But I can hear her answer: Depends on the type of writing.

Nothing is simple. Nothing is ... Wait. Creativity is a right-brain activity. Why don't I go write a poem about rain, and put all the rest of it on the back burner for a while?

You see how my mind works. That's why I'm blogging rather than working. Being in my head at the moment is like riding a bucking bronco. There's no steering this beast.

So here's a list I found of the primary actions of the two brain hemispheres. Just a quick look-see tells me which side dominates in me right now. What about you? Which side is in charge?

30 comments:

How about no brain functioning - like me, right now - I have been at this computer since 9AM with only about two hours total time up doing other things ( it is now 2AM ). I am off to try to sleep. Don't know if it's raining or not as I haven't even looked outside. I am starving, though, so I need a snack...mmmm, peanut butter and honey, maybe...night,night.

Right now (and feeling envious of your cups of coffee!), I find I ticked 11 out of the 13 left brain functions and 15 out of the 15 right brain ones. I wonder what this shows... oh, and BTW, I am left handed, which I feel makes a difference to my perception, too.

In the photo in the prior post, everyone looks so tired. Dr. Jen looks like a woman who needs support. I think she's using her left brain, motivated by her right brain. Lots of amazing changes take place when there's a nice combo of left/right working together. A poem. A story assignment. A blog about simple things. Then, getting back to work. It sounds like you're going to have an interesting day.

I think writers are right brained spirits living in a left-brained world. I think it's "presents possibilities" that's the key to being a writer. By the way, that you're drinking your coffee and musing on this rather than pouring over those figures is evidence of your right brains dominating!

Fascinating but rather frightening. Based on the two lists I have an awful feeling that my right cranial hemisphere was excised shortly after birth. But I know what you mean about writing and having to research the most obtuse areas of knowledge. Currently I am searching for a deck plan of the 1930s liner SS Europa!

Ah and what WM doesn't know is your brain and mine are like riding bucking broncos, we use several parts of the female brain to do one task.. Males use one part at a time with focused attention. Thus, moms can multitask in a skatter brain world, men can block it out with selective hearing..... Ha! Truly.

I don't know where my brain goes when I write poetry, but somewhere I find myself later sitting in a corner, unaware of where I've been for the past hour......Dear One,Di

Having majored in Geography/Geology in college, and taken courses in meteorology and climatology, I can so relate to what you are talking about (even though I never once used this stuff after I got out of college). But that's another story.

Anyway, being very new to your blog, what is it that you do for work, that you write about rain?

I'm definitely left-brained - a trained scientist. But in the last 10 - 20 years, I've recognized and acknowledged my artistic/creative proclivity and am now trying to develop and nurture the right side of my brain. I've also realized that I do seem to like to write - - - and have found my blog to be a huge outlet and stimulating arena. I've enjoyed your writing and photos. You are amazingly prolific and productive - don't know how you do it. It's late and my eyes are tired. I'd love to read more of your posts, but need to get to bed, where I'll toss and turn for most of the night. There is no rest, really.

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About Me

I'm a poet, gardener, and freelance writer who lives in California by the coast, in a small town surrounded by pastures, woods, and vineyards. Other things I am: recovering LA magazine editor and recovering alcoholic, wife of a tolerant man, mom to two beautiful daughters, mistress of beagles and cats, lover of mysteries and photography, a survivor of suicide, depression, addiction, and sundry minor ailments. I write for a living and write poetry for life.

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